In a day and age when communication is of utmost importance for small business owners the world over, the ability to integrate VoIP and social media into their daily lives can be very beneficial.
While many individuals (both customers and business owners) are familiar with the far-reaching arms of social media, Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) is a great system for improving your customer service handling, communications between employees, and saving money on your overall business expenses.
Starting with social media, keep these things in mind to improve your small business:
* Be active - A successful social media presence starts and ends with the fact that you are always looking for more ways to promote your products and services on SM. Just having a Facebook or Twitter page is certainly not enough, as you need to be proactive when it comes to social media. Do you update your pages regularly? Do you engage with consumers who come to your Facebook, Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn, Pinterest pages? Do you provide relative links on such pages to industry information that paints you as authoritative in your niche? If you answered no to one or all of those questions, you have much work to do;
* Network with others - One of the great things about social media is that you have the ability to network with other business owners, meaning it can be a win-win situation for both parties. In the event you own a small insurance business in town, hook up via social media with local realtors, restaurants and other such businesses. When you promote their shares, tweets and pins, the idea is that they will reciprocate in return. Considering the fact that most consumers will need a number of services and products, you and other merchants can use social media to both your advantages;
* Use social networks respectively - One of the dangers for small business owners when using social media is that they can become embroiled in customer issues. Let's say someone used one of your products and/or services and did not like it, then they go to social media to let the world know about it. You may end up going on social media to address the matter, eventually getting into an online shouting match over the dispute. The problem quickly becomes that your professionalism is called into question, perhaps leading to lost business with others who either use you or were thinking of using your company. Make sure you keep ALL social media engagements professional, including instances where your company and/or your reputation are called into question.
Dial-Up VoIP for Better Communications
While social media is a great way to reach out to customers, using VoIP is also a positive means to handle both in-house and outside communication and cut expenses over time.
With VoIP phone services, your small business can:
* Save money over the long haul - Small business owners can save on both their long distance and local calls to customers, with many providers offering unlimited plans for both needs. This can be especially beneficial to the business owner who must reach out to traveling employees on a regular basis. You can set up conferencing options via VoIP to stay in touch with your workers who are either working remotely or traveling for work, thereby cutting down on long distance charges;
* Integrate your needs - VoIP also allows the small business owner to integrate many of their needs all into one. With VoIP, you can pull together your audio, video, email and web applications needing the telephone all into one easy to use application;
* Number flexibility - Lastly, VoIP offers you the flexibility should you be expanding your small business over time. As the company grows, you can keep the same number with a hosted VoIP for business solution, meaning you just add more VoIP for business phones. You can also take advantage of new functions and features over time without spending a ton of money.
With all that both social media and VoIP can do for your small business, are you dialed-in to spreading the word and saving money at the same time?
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Social Marketing